How To Calm a Baby With Colic
Bringing home your baby is an amazing experience and also a very hectic time! You never imagined how exhausted you would be and all the work that goes into raising a little one!
Then you finally think things are going well, you have nursing down and all of a sudden…boom!
Your baby won’t stop crying!!
Sometimes this can happen during what people call the “witching hours” which are anywhere from 5-8 PM and some babies can have it all day or all night long!! 😩
Unfortunately, this sounds like you have a colic baby on your hands!
So what exactly causes colic in babies and how can you treat and prevent colic naturally?
Here are some tried and true tips to help you soothe your colic baby fast and get you a good night’s sleep!
Below is my youngest daughter sleeping who battles with colic. Oh how I miss the newborn stage!! So exhausting but so sweet!
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If you don’t have time to read all of this, check out the video at the bottom of the post!
What causes colic in babies?
Check their diet and YOUR diet too!
First and foremost before you do anything else, you need to check what they are eating.
Obviously little babies only have breast milk or formula, so at this point you think I sound nuts! However, if you are breastfeeding, you need to focus on your diet!
Remember, what you eat, your baby eats too!!
My first-born was so colicky every night and sometimes during the day as well. It didn’t occur to me that it was MY diet that was causing her gas and made her colicky!
Once I changed my diet, I noticed a HUGE change in her!
So what did I change exactly?
Dairy!!!
Dairy is a no no!!!
Many babies can’t handle large amounts of dairy in their bellies their first few weeks/months of life. They just aren’t able to tolerate it yet, even when it might be small amounts they get through our milk!
I didn’t even drink cow’s milk so it wasn’t that! It was my love for cheese, yogurt, and ice cream that was causing her so much pain. I also had to remove chocolate and broccoli which are also big gas culprits!
Once I cut down on those things, she was okay. As she got older I was able to slowly add those things back into my diet. Her stomach grew bigger as well and was more ready to handle those gassy foods.
Now, if you don’t breastfeed and they take formula, you’ll want to check with your doctor and try a different brand of formula.
Something in that brand might be making your child fussy and uncomfortable. They might need a lighter type of formula or something easier on their belly!
Could it be your baby’s bottle causing the gas?
My first daughter was my most colicky baby which makes everything that much harder for a first-time mom. Once I realized it was the dairy in my diet causing her gas, I cut it out and she was like a whole new baby!
However, I did pump and give her expressed milk I saved in bottles when I worked. One night she was so gassy that my husband asked if I ate a lot of dairy again because we couldn’t figure out what was making her so uncomfortable.
I realized later on that it was the new bottle I gave her!
Some bottles can get extra air flow in them and then that air goes into your baby’s mouth! This can be another culprit to the excessive gas and colic cries!
If you pump exclusively or formula-feed your baby, be sure to check out which bottles cause the least amount of gas and which ones will work best for your baby!
Below are three of the best anti-colic bottles I have used and others I know that swear by them!
I personally loved Tommee Tippee and MAM brands the most because I breastfed and felt that those bottles were easier to get a breastfed baby to take.
You can click the photos below for more information.
Baby Colic Remedies
Gripe Water for colic
Gripe water is amazing for colic!
Do yourself a favor if you’re pregnant, go buy this now or put it on your registry!
You’ll thank me later!!
If you aren’t sure if it’s their diet or even if it is but you need to help your baby ASAP, then give them some gripe water! It will soothe their little bellies and help them sleep.
I always used the Mommy Bliss brand below!
Gripe water was a lifesaver for my daughters!! Some moms also claim that it can help calm babies when they are teething as well!!
I have only ever used the Mommy Bliss gripe water in both the daytime & nighttime formula and they worked great.
I’ve heard some good things about Colic Calm but I never used it. That brand below does come with pacifiers you can use to give your baby to make it easier. I believe Mommy Bliss carries a pacifier as well.
Click the photos below for more information about these brands if you’re interested!
Baby Probiotics for Colic
I never personally tried this, so please contact your doctor first.
I love probiotics and my entire family takes probiotics now. However, I didn’t start my girls on probiotics until they were about one or two years old. The only reason I didn’t start them any earlier was because I wasn’t aware there was a probiotic available just for babies.
If I had a baby now, I would definitely try them since probiotics work wonders for my whole family!
The probiotics below are some of the best you can buy!
The BioGaia & Flora brand below are good brands and are used by many moms. Always ask your baby’s doctor for any recommendations if you’re unsure what kind to get.
Fennel Tea for Babies or Breastfeeding Moms
If you are breastfeeding your baby and would rather take something yourself than give your baby, try drinking some fennel tea.
Fennel tea can calm upset tummies and the tea can go through your milk to your baby who can reap the benefits of the tea!
Fennel or Chamomile Tea diluted is also safe for babies to drink themselves! (Source)
Below is a great organic brand to try!
Put your colicky baby in a baby carrier
This always worked with my little ones during that witching hour! Colicky babies aren’t feeling so good and they want to be as close to their mamas as they possibly can!
So get yourself a baby carrier and put them in there!
They will love the closeness and the constant moving around can help soothe their little tummies and may even fall asleep on you.
I loved Ergo Baby Carriers!!
They are the most comfortable baby carrier and you can use them until your child is almost 3 or 4 years old! What a great investment!
Click here for more information or click the photos below to check them out!
Give your colic baby a bath
Honestly, as soon as 5 PM came, my daughter started screaming like clockwork every night! So we started to give her a bath right around dinner time and she really enjoyed it and it calmed her so much!
Lay a nice warm washcloth on his/her belly and diffuse some lavender oils in the air to help soothe and relax the baby! This worked wonders with our girls!
Also, add some magnesium/Epsom salts to their bath! It will help so much!
Massage and Essential Oils for Colic
Right after you give your baby a bath and put their diaper on. Take your baby’s little legs and move them around in a circular/bicycle motion to pump their legs.
Moving your baby’s legs like this will help them release some gas and get their body in motion!
I love essential oils and have also used them to help comfort their little tummies. Essential oils for colic are so soothing for your baby! Young Living makes a Gentle Baby brand that is specially made for babies!
Please remember to apply some coconut oil (or any carrier oil) first to the bottoms of the baby’s feet and then a drop or two of Gentle Baby on their feet.
You can also diffuse it in the air and apply some to your own wrists and this will help calm your baby!
Another amazing essential oil that I can’t live without is Digize.
This oil has been a miracle in our home and has helped with so many digestive issues!
Be sure to dilute the oil first with some coconut oil, then add a drop or two to your fingertips and apply/massage gently onto their bellies in a clockwork circular motion.
This oil can be used for the whole family and you will get great use out of it! Always do your research and remember, I am not a doctor, just a mom!
Swaddle your baby
Some people swear by swaddling, others aren’t a fan. I swaddled my newborns the first few weeks when they went to sleep and they loved it!
As they got a little older and moved their arms around, I got a sleep sack and that worked much better. Either way, I always felt that swaddling helped with any colic issues they had.
Swaddling right after a nice warm bath always seemed to calm them and help them fall right to sleep! Plus….how cute do these babies look?
I love when they look like they’re wrapped in a burrito!! 😍 💗
Shush them
Wait, what?
Yes, I said shush them!
Holding your baby close and rocking back and forth while whispering in their ear “shhh” will help them calm down! It’s been known to work for decades!
You can read more about it here or you can get the book The Happiest Baby On The Block.
Sound Machine for colic baby
If you get sick of the shushing, you can always get yourself a sleep sound machine. These things are amazing and I’ve always loved having them in my little one’s rooms for naps and bedtime.
If you have other little kids in the home, or just a noisy home in general, then these little sound machines will block out the noise and allow your baby to sleep longer! I don’t know why I’d do without mine!
Also, babies love the shushing sound and it’s so soothing to them because it reminds them of the sound the womb makes when they were inside our tummies!
This is the one we have below, it doubles as a light machine as well for when they are older. These things are amazing and honestly the best $20 I ever spent! I also use it during nap time to block out any other noises going on in our crazy household of children!
The photo below the sound machine is a sound machine that you can use on the go. This wasn’t around when my daughters were newborns and is new!
It’s only $10 and you can use it in the car or wherever you need to block out noise or calm your baby.
Here’s the portable one:
If all else fails…..go outside!
Yes, that’s right, go outside!
Even if it’s 2am and freezing out!
Your baby will calm down, I promise you! Something about fresh, cool air normally calms a baby.
Strap that baby in your new baby carrier and go for a walk! You might not even have to be out for long but it will calm them and you’ll be very happy!
This shall pass too……
I remember my mom and godmother saying this to me when I was first pregnant and super nauseous! Not exactly what you want to hear but it’s so true because soon this stage will be over and you’ll be onto a new one!
I promise you that in a few weeks this colicky witching hour (or night) will end!
Once your baby’s tummy grows and gets stronger, she or he won’t cry as much. You’ll then have some new stage to worry about I’m sure!
Hang in there, because it goes by fast even though those crying phases that seem to last forever! I hope these tips helped learn how to calm your baby with colic!
You may also be interested in:
Babies magic tea worked wonder for my colicky newborn. It is an organic herbal supplement and breastfeeding mothers can also drink this stuff and pass it through their breast milk to settle their babies colic and other tummy related issues.
Awesome, Angela! Thanks for the tip! I never tried it but it sounds great and safe for baby & mama. 🙂
I can’t imagine having a baby with colic. A couple of mine had bouts of it and those were hard enough without being never ending. These are all fantastic suggestions though for any baby with discomfort. I swore by gripewater with my third and the baby carrier could be a lifesaver! Great post.
Thanks, Jamie! Yes- gripe water was a life saver!! And I couldn’t live without my baby carrier- especially with my third baby because I needed my two hands free for my other two kids! HA! 🙂